People were gathered in clusters at the harbor. The expansion construction had become less interesting after watching for a day or two, and it was more a matter of keeping children from lingering nearby to prevent accidents.

But the ship coming from far south was different. After always seeing light longships rowed by foreigners, now a ship with not one but three sails was arriving, so everyone had come out to watch.

While watching, the people of Lyssenford couldn’t shake their characteristic atmosphere of rejecting outsiders.

They were curious, but full of wariness. Since the Grand Duchess was from the south, the arrival of southerners was intriguing yet awkward and unfamiliar.

The Grand Duke’s carriage stopped, and when the door opened, the Grand Duke emerged first. The knights who had arrived at the harbor early bowed their heads. The Grand Duke turned and extended both hands into the carriage. The petite Grand Duchess took his hands and alighted from the carriage.

“Oh my, Your Highness!”

Princess, Your Highness! Those unloading goods and the main sailors leading the ship unconsciously blurted out the name they had long called, hurrying over. All looked delighted.

The people of Lyssenford glanced at the Grand Duchess. Here, no one greeted the Grand Duchess so warmly.

“Your Highness, oh my, our young lady!”

One voice sounded particularly fervent. The one rushing over repeating “Oh my, oh my” was the captain, with a build so large it would intimidate even the strapping men of Lyssenford.

His face was deeply tanned from battling the sun and harsh weather as a sailor, with the years etched in layers. He was probably in his mid-40s, around the same age as Duke Ostein.

“Johnny?”

Peon looked down at his wife calling the familiar nickname with wide eyes. Her pale, small face blossomed. How long had it been since she showed such vitality? In Peon’s memory, it was a long time ago.

“Yes, it’s me, Johnny! Oh my, our young lady, oh my!”

The sight of the captain who commanded the harbor rushing over to the Grand Duchess, who though short was clearly an adult, saying “Oh my, oh my” as if about to roll over, was just like an uncle seeing a cute niece. Or a grandfather seeing a grandchild.

“You came yourself? Oh my, Eddy!”

“How could I not come when our young lady called? Yes, the Swan has arrived.”

The huge man who quickly answered and arrived before the couple knew noble etiquette. He bowed his head to the Grand Duke, rough but respectfully.

“Greetings, Your Grace. I am Benjamin ‘Johnny’ Toti, who led a total of three ships from Ostein – the Swan, the Pearl, and the Mermaid’s Song. It is a pleasure to meet you.”

A former naval officer? His manner of greeting, swiftly removing his hat, still retained a military bearing. Peon nodded heavily.

Who was this man? He had never heard the name Johnny from Kaella’s lips. In fact, he knew nothing about how she had lived in Ostein.

Kaella had spent more time in Ostein than in Kline or Lyssenford, but he knew nothing of her life in the south, so he was on high alert with the man standing before him.

He wanted to know everything. Kaella, whom he should have known long ago but still did not know.

“Welcome. You must have had a difficult journey.”

“We took quite a roundabout route, but it was manageable. Rather, I was surprised it was closer than expected.”

“Welcome. Thank you for coming such a long way.”

“It’s nothing. We would go anywhere if commanded. Ah, this is a letter for both of you from His Grace the Duke of Ostein.”

Captain Johnny gestured behind him. Kaella’s expression brightened again at the sight of someone approaching with two boxes.

It was the enormously built sailor called Eddy. He bowed deeply to the couple and handed the boxes to Sir Wilfred.

“Have you been well, Eddy? How are your wife and children?”

“Our family…”

The booming voice that answered when Kaella asked was full of emotion. The sailor with arms thick enough to beat a shark barehanded had a very strong Ostein accent.

“We’re living very well thanks to Your Highness’s grace. Everyone in our household prays day and night for Your Highness’s well-being.”

“Really? Thank you.”

“Of course, Your Highness. It’s only natural.”

The Lyssenford nobles who had hurriedly come out at the news of the Grand Duke’s personal appearance looked with surprised eyes at the huge merchant ship and the strapping men filling it.

“We’ve brought lots of things Your Highness likes.”

Oh my, to come to this cold place and suffer such prejudice and nearly die. The seafaring men, no less tall and strong than the people of Lyssenford, bowed their heads repeatedly, looking only at Kaella with reddened eyes.

“Is that so? Shall we take a look, dear? Let’s go closer.”

Peon began walking towards the ship, escorting Kaella.

“Young lady!”

“Princess, Your Highness!”

But their walking pace was very slow. This was because they had to greet each of the sailors who bowed their heads, overcome with emotion at seeing their beloved young lady. They were all former Krania Imperial Navy or knights belonging to the Ostein ducal house.

The sailors and naval officers lined up on both sides bowed their heads. The Duke of Ostein’s intentions were felt in that massive scale.

Since Lyssenford’s harbor was small, he couldn’t send large ships, so he reluctantly reduced to medium-sized vessels, but composed the crew entirely of familiar faces who had seen and served Kaella since she was very young.

“Your Grace, Your Highness.”

Moreover, each ship was loaded with so many goods that the hulls were submerged deeper than usual.

“Please authorize the unloading of the merchant ships sent from Ostein.”

At the captain’s disciplined request for unloading permission, Kaella finally smiled. She managed a faint smile at the welcome faces she was meeting after many years.

Peon could not take his eyes off that sight. This was precisely why he had deliberately requested the Duke of Ostein to send goods. He willingly paid a high price to see his wife smile.

“Dear. You should give permission.”

Kaella nodded, looking at the nostalgic sea scent and the knights who had served her.

“Begin unloading!”

“Unload!”

The people of Lyssenford flinched in surprise at the disciplined command. Immediately, the sailors began unloading the cargo they had brought.

What strange items had they brought? People craned their necks curiously to see, and whenever the packaging of cargo was opened to reveal the contents, gasps of amazement arose spontaneously.

Expensive salt took up half the merchant ship.

Everyone’s jaws dropped at the endless unloading of salt barrels, while precious southern fabrics came down by type, and fragrant oils and soaps that could be smelled even by people far away came out in crates.

There was plenty of strong rum and precious wine.

“Ah, this is for our young lady. His Grace the Duke sent it.”

“That’s also for the young lady.”

“That too.”

“Yes, that’s right as well.”

Moreover, in addition to the ordered items, there were so many things the Duke of Ostein had sent for his only daughter that the person in charge of checking the goods was overwhelmed trying to classify them. There was no room to step in the harbor.

“This is much more than expected.”

“Hahaha! Our Duke originally intended to send a fleet-sized group of merchant ships! We reduced it to just this much, which is a shame! Hahaha!”

The huge sailors and knights laughed heartily as they carried the goods.

The abundance of expensive items showed how wealthy Ostein was, and the scale of the knights who brought the goods and the devotion they showed to the Grand Duchess was the dignity of the Ostein princess.

The Duke of Ostein knew why his son-in-law had specifically requested to order goods from his father-in-law in the southern central region.

The Grand Duchess had a formidable family backing her. She had a reliable and wealthy father. She had knights who shouted her name and gave absolute loyalty.

It was deliberately shown that the Grand Duchess was also a precious, beloved daughter and the heir to Ostein.

Having heard that his daughter, whom he had raised alone without remarrying, had nearly died from insubordination right after getting married, the Duke of Ostein had clearly prepared thoroughly. It was a shockingly fresh sight for Lyssenford.

*

“Oh my, Your Highness, look at this. These pearls are so beautiful.”

“Oh my!”

Denise and Cecil made a fuss. The Duke of Ostein, who had filled an entire box with pearls fished from the sea to send to his daughter, had also written a long letter to encourage her.

The letter, asking if she was recovering well and if she was struggling with Lyssenford’s cold, stretched over ten pages of worry.

Kaella smiled as she happily read the letter that meticulously instructed what to do with each item sent, while looking at the nostalgic Ostein goods that Cecil, Denise, and Mary showed her.

On the other hand, the letter the Duke of Ostein sent to Peon was just two pages long. The father-in-law’s intention, compressing into two pages the message that he had much to say but would not, was clear.

I trusted you, but this incident was very disappointing. But I’m grateful that you handled it well, and I ask that you pay more attention in the future.

Throughout the letter, the implication was that he would overlook it for now, since Peon had the merit of saving the Duke of Ostein from being killed by the Emperor in Kline.

This was because of the incident where Kaella collapsed after eating Perenco, but if he knew that she had even drunk poison intending to take her own life, he would immediately rush over with the prenuptial contract. It was fortunate that her father, who would always take Kaella’s side, was still alive.

Peon, who had done his best to save the Duke of Ostein in this life as well, put down the letter from the Duke of Ostein. He did not forget the weight of the blood on his hands. Saving someone once does not erase the crime of unknowing complicity committed in the past.

He had provided the Emperor with the weapon that killed the Duke of Ostein. Though he didn’t know, a sin is a sin. Peon repeatedly engraved this in his mind.

“We’re processing all the accumulated soap. The space will be empty soon.”

“Salt goes this way!”

“Ah, that’s Your Highness’s belongings. Bring it over here.”

The bunch of keys that the dead butler had held tightly went into the Grand Duchess’s hands. Kaella had all the warehouses opened and thoroughly dusted.

She had everything taken out, even old items that had been shoved into corners out of excessive frugality, using up consumables and finding uses for unused items.

All the women in the castle rolled up their sleeves to sort out and organize the gifts from her father, gifts bought by her husband, and separately ordered items.

Managing and supervising the goods brought in today was the head maid’s job, but the head maid ended up reporting everything to Kaella and getting her permission.

Whether Kaella intended it or not, her traces and touch remained throughout Lyssenford Castle.

It was none other than Kaella de Chasseur who was the mistress of Lyssenford Castle. She who had tried to die as quietly as possible now sat surrounded by items filled with the nostalgic scent of her beloved homeland.

The hall of Lyssenford Castle was filled with exotic items as if it were Ostein. Her father was the Duke of Ostein, said to be the wealthiest after the Emperor in the Krania Empire, and she was the heir to that title.

A hint of awe appeared in the eyes of the Lyssenford people watching her return leading an enormous procession of goods. The knights also treated Kaella more carefully.

“If only you had done this earlier, Your Highness.”

Cecil whispered a bit regretfully. The maids from Ostein, who had suffered prejudice knowingly or unknowingly starting with what Kaella endured, had faces shining with pride today.

That was true. If she had been an ordinary princess, she should have immediately contacted her father as soon as she woke up after collapsing from eating Perenco, to show how great and noble a person she was.

It wasn’t difficult to display the power of the Ostein ducal family in Lyssenford. It was something Kaella before regression couldn’t do, and Kaella after regression didn’t feel Lyssenford was worth it.

No matter how much she thought about it, the conclusion was always the same. It wasn’t worth it.

Even acting as the Ostein princess would have to be done delicately, adjusting the level so as not to offend the Emperor’s eyes fixed throughout Lyssenford, so why bother going to such lengths?

Anyway, despite bringing a tremendous amount of dowry, the people of Lyssenford treated her as an uncomfortable foreigner. And since she was going to die anyway, what did it matter?

“Oh my, much better items have come than what we ordered.”

Denise puffed up proudly next to the admiring Lady Sirenster.

“It’s because our young lady is such a precious daughter that His Grace the Duke paid special attention.”

“We’re so grateful, really.”

But now gratitude towards her could be heard from all around. It’s a harsh place where you have to overcome mortal danger twice to finally be acknowledged. How remarkable. Either survive to barely gain recognition, or just die. That’s all there is to it.

Even as she sneered inwardly, seeing people bowing their heads to the ground in gratitude to the esteemed Grand Duchess made her cynical heart soften. Unbelievably, she felt a bit happy.

She became like a child delighted to be praised, her mood lifting for no reason. She had finally received the recognition she had desperately wanted in Lyssenford. The results of things she had done without much diligence were appearing positively here and there. That was satisfying too.

At the same time, it’s pitiful. The very fact that even the Grand Duchess has to work hard to be recognized is absurd, and it’s pathetic to feel proud of such a thing. Though outwardly she was the noble princess and Grand Duchess, inside she was still a miserable prisoner confined to a tower.

“Oh my, how lovely. Indeed, fabric must always be ordered from Ostein.”

“Oh, goodness. Your Highness, Your Highness. It’s this one. This color! A dress made from this would suit you well!”

Kaella was startled to see Lady Sirenster and Denise, their eyes rolling back as soon as she opened the enormous fabric box.

“Why is there so much? I only asked for enough to make one outfit…”

“Didn’t you know? His Grace the Grand Duke changed the order. He ordered all the fashionable fabrics from Ostein in every color.”

Lady Fabiola Sirenster chuckled. At those words, Kaella turned her gaze to the other side of the hall. Peon had been watching her for quite some time. When their eyes meet, he smiles gently.

‘Why?’

Kaella couldn’t understand Peon’s kindness towards her, or rather, the emotion that was too blatant to be called mere kindness.

Does experiencing regression change a person? No, that couldn’t be it, as Kaella hadn’t changed at all. She was still the same foolish, stupid, ugly Kaella who couldn’t read the room.

That’s why it was even more incomprehensible. Why did he look at her with such eyes? She hadn’t changed at all.

If anything, she had become more twisted, more rough-edged, more broken, and even the passion and diligence that could barely be called her strengths had disappeared. She was just worn out, exhausted, shattered and worn down by harsh experiences.

So, why?

Why now did he look at her with such gentle eyes, take care of her in everything, and be so anxious when he couldn’t be near her?

She couldn’t understand, and in truth, she didn’t want to know more.